About compound paths

You
can combine several paths into a single object, called a compound
path. Create a compound path when you want to do any of the
following:

Add transparent holes to a path.

Preserve the transparent
holes within some text characters, such as o and e, when
you convert characters to editable letterforms using the Create
Outlines command. Using the Create Outlines command always results
in the creation of compound paths.

Apply a gradient, or add contents that span multiple paths.
Although you can also apply a gradient across multiple objects using
the Gradient tool, applying a gradient to a compound path is often
a better method because you can later edit the entire gradient by
selecting any of the subpaths. With the Gradient tool, later editing
requires selecting all of the paths you originally selected.

Best practices for editing compound
paths

Keep
the following guidelines in mind as you edit compound paths:

Changes to path attributes (such as stroke and fill)
always alter all subpaths in a composite path—it doesn’t matter
which selection tool you use, or how many subpaths you select. To
preserve the individual stroke and fill attributes of the paths
you want to combine, group them instead.

In a compound path, any effect that is positioned relative
to a path’s bounding box—such as a gradient, or an image pasted
inside—is actually positioned relative to the bounding box of the
entire compound path (that is, the path that encloses all of the
subpaths).

If you make a compound path, then change its properties and
release it, using the Release command, the released paths inherit
the compound path’s properties; they don’t regain their original
properties.

If
your document contains compound paths with many smooth points, some output
devices may have problems printing them. If so, simplify or eliminate the
compound paths, or convert them to bitmap images using a program
such as Adobe Photoshop.

If you apply a fill to a compound path, holes sometimes don’t
appear where you expect them to. For a simple path like a rectangle,
the inside, or the area you can fill, is easy to see—it’s the area
within the enclosed path. However, with a compound path, InDesign
must determine whether the intersections created by a compound path’s
subpaths are inside (filled areas) or outside (holes). The direction
of each subpath—the order in which its points were created—determines
whether the area it defines is inside or outside. If a subpath is
filled when you want it to be a hole, or vice versa, click Reverse
Path in the Pathfinder panel to reverse the direction of that subpath.

Create a compound path

You
can create a compound path from two or more open or closed paths.
When you create a compound path, all of the originally selected
paths become subpaths of the new compound path. The selected paths
inherit the stroke and fill settings of the object farthest back
in the stacking order.

Note:

If one or more selected
objects have contents, such as text or imported images, the attributes
and contents of a compound path are set by the attributes and contents
of the object farthest back. Selected objects farther behind, without contents,
won’t affect the compound path.

You can change the shape
of any part of a compound path by using the Direct Selection tool to
select an anchor point on one subpath.

Use the Selection tool to
select all of the paths you want to include in the compound path.

You can fill a hole created by a subpath
or turn a subpath into a hole. Using the Direct Selection tool,
select a point on the subpath you want to change. Then select Object >
Paths > Reverse Path or click Reverse Path in the Pathfinder
panel.

Change holes to fills in a compound
path

The direction of each subpath—the order
in which its points were created—determines whether the area it
defines is inside (filled areas) or outside (empty). If, in your
compound path, holes sometimes don’t appear where you expect them
to, you can reverse the direction of that subpath.

Two separate closed paths (left) and two subpaths of the same
compound path (right); the compound path uses the center circle
as a hole

With the Direct Selection tool , select
the part of the compound path to reverse (or a point on that part).
Do not select the entire compound path.

Do one of the following:

Choose Object > Paths >
Reverse Path.

Click Reverse Path in the Pathfinder panel.

Break up a compound path

You
can break up a compound path by releasing it, which turns each of
its subpaths into an independent path.

Using the Selection tool , select
a compound path.

Choose Object > Paths > Release
Compound Path.

Note:

The Release command is unavailable when
the selected compound path is contained inside a frame, or when
the path contains text.

Change the holes in a compound
path

You
can eliminate a hole created by a subpath or fill a subpath that
has created a hole by reversing its direction.

Using the Direct Selection tool , select
a point on the subpath you want to reverse. Don’t select the entire
compound path.

Create compound shapes

You create compound shapes using
the Pathfinder panel (Window > Object & Layout >
Pathfinder). Compound shapes can be made up of simple or compound paths,
text frames, text outlines, or other shapes. The appearance of the compound
shape depends on which Pathfinder button you choose.

In most cases,
the resulting shape adopts the attributes (fill, stroke, transparency, layer,
and so on) of the frontmost object. When you subtract shapes, however, objects
in the front are deleted. The resulting shape takes on the attributes
of the backmost object instead.

When you include a text frame in a compound
shape, the shape of the text frame changes, but the text itself
stays the same. To alter the text itself, create a compound path
using text outlines.

Compound shape used as a text frame (left) compared to one
created from a text outline (right)

Create a compound shape

You can work with a compound shape as a single
unit or release its component paths to work with each separately.
For example, you might apply a gradient fill to a part of the compound
shape, but leave the rest of the shape unfilled.

Gradient applied to a compound shape (left) compared to gradient
applied to one part of the compound shape (right)

Choose
Window > Object & Layout > Pathfinder
to open the panel.

Select the objects you want to combine in a compound
shape.

Click a button (such as Add) in the Pathfinder section
on the Pathfinder panel.

Release paths in a compound shape

To regroup component paths without losing
changes you’ve applied to individual paths, choose Group in the
Object menu, rather than Compound Paths > Make.

Create paths from text outlines

Use
the Create Outlines command to convert selected text characters
into a set of compound paths that you can edit and manipulate as
you would any other path. The Create Outlines command is useful
for creating effects in large display type, but it is rarely useful
for body text or other smaller-size type.

Note:

If
you simply want to apply a color stroke, or a gradient fill or stroke
to text characters, you don’t need to convert the text to outlines.
You can use the toolbox and the Swatches, Color, or Gradient panels
to apply colors and gradients directly to the strokes or fills of
selected characters.

The Create Outlines command gets its
font outline information from the actual Type 1, TrueType, or OpenType files. When you create outlines, characters
are converted in their current positions, retaining all graphics
formatting, such as stroke and fill.

Note:

Some
font manufacturers block the information needed to create outlines.
If you select such a protected font and choose Type >
Create Outlines, a message will explain that the font cannot be
converted.

When you convert type to outlines, the type
loses its hints—instructions built into outline fonts
for adjusting their shapes, so that your system displays or prints them
optimally at small sizes. Therefore, type converted to outlines
may not display as well when rendered in small sizes or at low resolutions.

Copy the outlines and use the Edit > Paste Into command to mask an image by pasting it into the converted outlines.

Use the converted outlines as text frames, so that you can type or place text in them.

Change the stroke attributes of letterforms.

Use text outlines to create compound shapes.

Working with text outlines

A. Type character before conversion to text outline B. Text outline with image pasted into it C. Text outline used as a text frame

Because converted text outlines become sets of compound paths, you can edit individual subpaths of converted outlines by using the Direct Selection tool. You can also break the character outlines into independent paths by releasing them from the compound path.

Convert text outlines to paths

By
default, creating outlines from type removes the original text.
However, if you prefer, you can make outlines appear over a copy
of the original text, so that none of the text is lost.

When you select type characters
in a text frame and convert them to outlines, the resulting outlines
become anchored (inline) objects that flow with the text. Because
the converted text is no longer true type, you will no longer be
able to highlight and edit the characters using the Type tool. In
addition, typographical controls will no longer apply. Make sure
that you’re satisfied with the typographic settings of the type
you convert to outlines, and be sure to create a copy of the original
text.

Use the Selection tool to
select a text frame, or use the Type tool to select one
or more characters.

Choose Type > Create Outlines.

Convert a copy of text outlines
to paths

Use the Selection tool to
select a text frame, or use the Type tool to select one
or more characters.

Hold down Alt (Windows) or Option
(Mac OS) as you choose Type >
Create Outlines. The copy is created exactly on top of the original;
use the Selection tool to drag it away, if you like.